Liftronic Pty Ltd v Unver

Liftronic Pty Ltd appealed to the High Court of Australia against a decision of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. The dispute concerned an employer's liability for negligence and the employee's contributory negligence, specifically the apportionment of responsibility for the damage suffered by the employee.

The High Court was required to determine whether the Court of Appeal erred in setting aside a jury's apportionment of responsibility for contributory negligence and whether the jury's apportionment was reasonable in the circumstances. The court also considered the respective roles of a jury in delivering a verdict at trial and an appellate court reviewing that verdict, particularly in relation to the conduct of the case by the parties.

The High Court held that the Court of Appeal had erred in its approach. It emphasised that contributory negligence and apportionment are questions of fact, and that an appellate court must determine appeals by reference to legal principle and the specific facts of the case, rather than by perceived factual similarities to other cases. The court noted that the Court of Appeal's reliance on the criterion of "perversity" was likely to mislead and overstate the restraint on appellate correction of error. The court also considered that the nature of the employee's departure from the employer's system of work, whether defiant or a misguided attempt to fulfil duties, was relevant to the just and equitable apportionment of responsibility.

The High Court allowed the appeal, set aside the orders of the Court of Appeal, and remitted the matter to that court for determination of the nett amount for which judgment should be entered and the question of costs. The respondent was ordered to pay the costs of the appeal to the High Court.